Newbie going to switch soon, need some guidance

This is my first time posting here, so sorry if I broke any rules or am in the wrong section. Also, sorry for the long post

I've finally decided to make the switch from Windows to Mac. All my life I've use Windows (and some Linux), but short of playing with them in stores I've never really actually USED a Mac. I did some searching and figured this would be the best place to come to for advice.

Making the switch: Obviously I am going to need to backup and copy my information. The issue here is half my funds for the shiny new 27" iMac is going to come from selling my current computer, and the files won't be available when I actually use the Mac. So my question is this - would it be possible for me to use an external HDD formatted with NTFS to backup my files now, then copy them into my iMac when the time finally comes?

Summary: can OS X read (write isn't necessary) NTFS drives?

Backing up: Assuming my first question is a yes, it's time for round two. Could I reformat the drive with whatever Mac uses after copying everything, then use it as a backup hard drive? More importantly, does OS X come with, or is there software available (preferably free, but under $20 max) that can be used to periodically backup everything to the drive?

Lastly, and most important - any tips for a first time Mac user? From what I've gathered, I would much rather be using a Mac than a Windows box, seeing as how most of what I do is media related (video/picture editing) and I'm a sucker for shiny.

I have had my mac for about a year. You will be up and running in no time, but its the little things that I am still finding that just makes me glad I switched.

I spent time watching the Mac 101 and Switch 101 videos at Apple, which I found helpful. I watched them before and after I got my mac. I think there was another set somewhere, but I don't see them now.

Learn Expose and Spaces. I took me awhile to understand them. At first I didn't really like them, but that was a lack of understanding. I love them now. I find them very useful for work.

I can't remember what they are called, but the downloads and the documents folder on the Dock that expand are great. I can't believe it took me a year to get using them. I also launch a lot of stuff with just spotlight.

One thing I need to do is spend more time with utilities. I just haven't needed to because I haven't had any problems in over a year

I love time machine for the ease of back ups. I also started using Carbon Copy Cloner so I would have a bootable back up. Being the computer I use for work, I wanted something I could boot.

1. OnyxTitanium Software
Get the version for the version of OS X you wll be running. And real the documentation for the app well.

2. Mactracker
mactracker.dreamhosters.com
Specification database of every Apple Macintosh model. From 1984 to the present. And updated often with the new releases. So when anyone asks you a specific question about your mac hardware you will have the answer in this app.

3. The missing manual series
The missing manual for: snow leopard, iwork, whatever else Mac related. My point is if you ever want a how to Macbook, look into the "Missing manual" series. They are some of the best how to books for Macs out there.

6. Do not use antivirus on your Mac. The OS X part of it. There is no need as there is no OS X viruses only some user initiated trogans that can be easily avoided. SO inshort on your OS X partition - avoid antivirus software like the plague.
But on your windows partition, treat that exactly as you would your old PC as it has the same vulnerabilities. But nothing will jump to the OS X side. Windows viruses stay on the windows side.

7. On the whole defragging is not needed on OS X. Some people defrag their OS X with the idefrag app. But for 99.9% of users it's just a very lengthy process for a result so minute you will not even notice it. This is because on the whole OS X is resistant to file fragmentation.
But like the above the windows partition will fragment in the same way your old PC did.

I have had my mac for about a year. You will be up and running in no time, but its the little things that I am still finding that just makes me glad I switched.

I spent time watching the Mac 101 and Switch 101 videos at Apple, which I found helpful. I watched them before and after I got my mac. I think there was another set somewhere, but I don't see them now.

Learn Expose and Spaces. I took me awhile to understand them. At first I didn't really like them, but that was a lack of understanding. I love them now. I find them very useful for work.

I can't remember what they are called, but the downloads and the documents folder on the Dock that expand are great. I can't believe it took me a year to get using them. I also launch a lot of stuff with just spotlight.

One thing I need to do is spend more time with utilities. I just haven't needed to because I haven't had any problems in over a year

I love time machine for the ease of back ups. I also started using Carbon Copy Cloner so I would have a bootable back up. Being the computer I use for work, I wanted something I could boot.

I will be switching my parents to a mac later this year.

Those things on the dock for docs and downloads are "stacks." The Downloads stack I kept, after customizing the icon. I still haven't gotten too into it. It's a handy feature, but I don't really use it much.

I pretty much missed out on Leopard. I only owned a machine running Leopard for 3 months before Snow Leopard came out. My dad had Leopard on the machines I'd use, I had it on my Power Mac G5 for the 5 minutes before the logic board fried. But yea, being a year back into things in the world of modern OSes... I love it. Still expanding my uses for all of the various features. Stacks is one I just don't have much use for considering I don't deal with an incredibly high volume of content.

I have another question - financially, it's going to be another month or two until I can afford the iMac I want (without a job right now ) so should I still pick one up when I have the funds? Or would it be better to wait until the next model is shipped and snatch that one instead?

Darkest - probably the i5 or i7 models, seeing as how they both come with the HD4850. I'd only save $100 if I went with the C2D model and same same chip, and I get much more performance with the higher processors.

Another question - if I buy my iMac with 4GB RAM (2x 2GB), could I upgrade it to 8GB with another 4GB kit? It seems possible seeing as how you can have 8GB in the form of 4 RAM sticks, but that is waaaaaay to expensive at the moment.

Regarding NTFS compatibility; there is an open source utility to read and write NTFS drives called NYFS-3g.
I use it and it works very well. If all you have to do is read NTFS drives, you won't need NTFS-3g.

- if I buy my iMac with 4GB RAM (2x 2GB), could I upgrade it to 8GB with another 4GB kit? It seems possible seeing as how you can have 8GB in the form of 4 RAM sticks, but that is waaaaaay to expensive at the moment.

Pretty sure that's a yes. Confirm with Apple when you buy, but then buy the RAM later from somewhere else (OWC? online) because Apple charges much more for it. Of course, that means installing it yourself, but there are folks here who can "talk" you through it.